Utilize acquires tn4 Solutions to nearly double Sage customer base

The UK managed IT provider said the deal adds more than 150 Sage 200 customers and four staff, marking its sixth acquisition.

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Utilize Plc has acquired tn4 Solutions, a specialist Sage partner, in a move the company says will almost double its existing Sage 200 customer base. The deal, announced on 19 October 2026, brings more than 150 Sage 200 customers and four members of the tn4 team into the Utilize group, including tn4 Managing Director Tim Hanchet, who will work with existing and prospective customers to ensure continuity during the transition.

The acquisition is Utilize's sixth to date. Guy Hocking, Managing Director at Utilize, said the deal was "a great fit for both businesses," citing tn4's strong customer relationships and the complementary nature of its Sage 200 expertise alongside Utilize's broader managed IT portfolio. The company did not disclose the financial terms of the transaction.

The deal

Following completion, Utilize expects to close the year with more than 150 employees and annual turnover of approximately £28 million. The combined business will offer tn4's existing customers access to Utilize's wider services portfolio, covering managed IT support, cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure and communications, in addition to the Sage business applications expertise that underpins the acquisition rationale.

Warren Davies, Founder and CEO of Utilize, described Sage as "an important part of our growth," and said the acquisition increases the company's capacity to support customers and creates cross-sell opportunities across its technology services range.

Market context

The UK managed service provider (MSP) market has seen sustained consolidation over the past several years, driven by private equity appetite for recurring-revenue businesses and the operational benefits of scale in areas such as cybersecurity tooling, cloud procurement, and vendor relationships. Mid-market ERP and accounting software support, where Sage 200 and Sage Intacct sit, is a particularly active consolidation target: Sage partners with specialist vertical knowledge carry both an installed customer base and billable implementation hours that are attractive to acquirers looking to expand without building expertise from scratch.

Utilize's strategy of combining business applications depth with broader managed IT capabilities reflects a broader trend among regional MSPs seeking to move up the value chain. Customers running business-critical financial systems increasingly expect their technology partners to manage security and infrastructure alongside the applications layer, reducing the number of vendors they need to coordinate. That bundled model tends to improve retention and increases average revenue per account, which makes acquisitions of specialist partners an efficient growth lever.

Regulatory pressure is also a factor. UK financial services firms and their supply chains face growing obligations under the FCA's operational resilience rules and the wider DORA framework, which applies to firms with EU operations. Providers that can credibly support both the accounting systems and the surrounding security and cloud infrastructure are better positioned to address those requirements as a single managed service.

Utilize said its immediate priority is to ensure a smooth transition for tn4 customers and to bring the two teams together before pursuing further cross-sell activity.

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